Taehyun led Mino into the master bedroom that was furthest from the living room in the younger guy’s bachelor pad. The room where he slept was tastefully done in blacks and whites giving an overall clean and modern feel. There was a little spot for his cat, Polly to scratch and nap just next to the window where it will be all warm and cozy during the day.

The bed as expected was the main focal point. it was a queen sized bed that stood in the middle of the room. With the silken sheets and fluffy pillows, it made Mino wanted to hurry up and sink in the softness of it while savoring the feel of Taehyun’s body against his. At that moment, the older guy very much wanted to get the younger guy in the shortest amount of time possible.

However, Mino knew that he needed to wait and have patience since it had been three years since they were last together skin against skin. He wanted to take things really slow and just savor the whole feeling all over again after all there was all the time in the world for him.

“The room is very you, Taehyun-ah” Mino commented as he took in the look and feel of the room.

“It came out to as close to how I envisioned it to look when I saw the space. I am glad it turned out well.” Taehyun answered.

Before Mino could even formulate a reply, Taehyun stepped close to Mino once more to put his arms around the rapper’s neck. Taehyun closed the distance between them by giving Mino a deep kiss that almost immediately the heat and passion between them.

It was a frenzied meeting of the lips with open mouth kisses with their tongues freely exploring each other as they re-familiarized with themselves with the feel and taste of the other. Their hands moving restless against the clothes they were wearing as though frustrated by the barriers and layers they wore between them.

Clothes were impatiently stripped away and carelessly strewn on the floor all the way leading towards the bed before they finally tumbled onto the soft and very inviting bed with Taehyun beneath him. They moaned in unison when their skin finally came into contact with each other.

The contact though arousing for the rapper but it also snapped him back a little to reality. He opened his eyes to look down at Taehyun and it was a beautiful sight to behold. He saw how Taehyun looked with his clouded with passion, a nice shade of pink in lovely contrast to his pale skin and lips swollen with his kisses. Mino had never seen anything more beautiful.

He cradled the younger guy as though he was something so precious and fragile like a glass doll that that Taehyun felt his heart burst at the tenderness of it, he felt truly loved at that moment. Continuing the with the sweetness of the movements, Mino began the sensual dance of bringing the younger guy to a level of passion that he did not knew even existed between them.

“I love you Taehyun-ah” Mino confessed as they joined in the most intimate way possible he was getting slightly choked with the feelings he was feeling for Taehyun.

Too overwhelmed by what he was feeling, Taehyun could only hugged the older guy tightly to him as they chased towards the final lap of fulfillment before they lay tangled in the most intimate way  as they caught their breaths back.

“Don’t go.” Taehyun protested as he felt Mino removing himself from him making the older guy smile at neediness of the younger.

“Hmmm okay.” Mino mumbled sleepily as he hugged Taehyun closer to him before they both slipped seamlessly into dreamland together.

~~~~~~~~~~

 Mino was drifting somewhere along dreamland when he could hear the faint sound of baby crying. He could feel the younger guy shifting slightly beside him before he snuggled back in to the covers.

Was really dreaming that they actually had a child together or something?

 “Taehyun-ah, the baby is crying.” Mino mumbled sleepily his sleep induced mind had not totally grasped into the reality of the situation.

Taehyun only let out a groan before he turned around to pluck something off the ground before putting it on Mino’s chest. 

For a few moments while Mino head finally woke up and cleared his head, all he saw was Polly perched on his chest meowing pitifully  which sounded like almost like a real baby crying. The older male just reached over to pet the kitten all the while looking questioningly at the guy still sleeping beside him.

“She is hungry for food. So she is trying to call a human or any human for that matter to feed her now.” Taehyun mumbled sleepily as though that was supposed to explain everything that was happening so far.

“So are you going to feed her or not?”

“Later. She will fall asleep again when she gets tired besides it is not even 6 am yet.” Taehyun answered sleepily.

Mino only smiled as he continued the cat perched on his chest purring away while the human cat snuggled against his body and continued sleeping. He carefully settled Polly on the floor when she finally fell asleep as Taehyun predicted only to realize that he was completely wide awake. 

Turning to his side, Mino brushed the hair off the younger’s face so that he could take a better look and just using his fingertips to lightly trace Taehyun’s features. He knew Taehyun was not ready to say those important three words back to him yet. He would wait for the day when the younger guy was finally ready.

“You are not planning to fall back to sleep?” Taehyun mumbled with his eyes still close.

“I like to watch you sleep while I think about whether should I have my way with you.”  Mino answered naughtily which Taehyun let out a soft chuckle in response.

“We can always do it again when we wake up again later.” Taehyun muttered as he tried to swat off Mino’s naughty little hands.

“If we have it now and have another one later, then it will be two times instead of one.” Mino cheekily replied while his hands continued to roam.

“You greedy oaf.” Taehyun could not help but to let out a small that only served to turn the older guy on.

“Well, it is not like you are doing anything to stop me.” Mino mumbled before he adjusted their position so that Taehyun was lying on top of him.

Taehyun only smiled sleepily before he leaned down to kissed Mino deeply which marked the start of another round of love making.

~~~~~~~~~~

“It feels like forever since we last met up.” Seunghoon commented as they dug into their dinner the next evening.

“It was like you dropped off from the radar. We are worried.” Seungyoon said before he shoved some pasta into his mouth.

“Maknae! So you are back together with Mino?” Jinwoo asked.

“I guess I am?” Taehyun answered suddenly feeling self-conscious as he felt three pairs of eyes all on him.

“What do you mean by you guess that you are? It is either a Yes or a No.” Seungyoon scoffed.

“If he is not sure that might mean that Maknae does not how to label the state of them but I would think they have already slept together. No?” Jinwoo pointed out innocently.

The reaction was immediate since everyone seated at the table started to choke on their food simultaneously.

“Yah! Can you make such comments when we are done with the main course? Like during dessert for example?” Seunghoon protested as he wiped his mouth.

“But it is true! He has the “I just had awesome ” glow to him!” Jinwoo defended his point.

“Why are you all talking as if I am not here? Why are you all talking about the topic as though we are talking about the weather? Aren't you guys taking this a little too lightly?” Taehyun muttered exasperatedly.

“So… Are you sleeping with him?” Seungyoon asked bluntly making the said guy gulped awkwardly.

“He is just putting it out here.” Seunghoon clarified as he waited for an answer from the youngest.

“We slept together yesterday since you all are so interested in my love life suddenly.” Taehyun supplied figuring out that it will be so much easier to just tell them instead of evading the inevitable question that was in all of his friend’s heads.

“So?” The three of them prompted eagerly together.

“So what? It was nice… really nice…” Taehyun mumbled suddenly feeling his face heating up.

"Just nice?" The twin Seungs muttered in unison.

“Awww…. Maknae is shy!” Jinwoo exclaimed.

“Oh come on… You can eat any day… Let’s spill.” Seunghoon impatiently as he looked at the youngest.

“Is that all that you all are here for?”

“What else is going to be more interesting than this?” Seunghoon answered shrugging his sholders.

Taehyun took a deep breath before he started to tell his dear friends starting from the beginning from the time Mino appeared on his balcony, to the fan signing to their date at the Seunghyun’s which Taehyun made sure to highlight to them that he indeed noticed them.

“See? I told you our cover had been blown.” Jinwoo muttered under his breath.

 Taehyun then when on to share little snippets here and about their interactions leading up to the events of the night before and also how Mino actually said the three words. The three of them widened their eyes but they wisely kept quiet so it gave Taehyun the encouragement to share more with them about his concerns he had with their “arrangement”.

“I think just take your time to sort out your feelings. I am sure you will know what to do.” Jinwoo advised.

“However, that being said I think you should not make him wait to long either. He might just get tired waiting and just give up.”

“You are most important if he gives up then he was not even worth your time to begin with anyway.” Seungyoon commented.

“As always, Yoon is forever the overprotective fella.” Seunghoon muttered.

“I don’t agree with the starting some form of a relationship with Mino but since it is Taehyun’s personal life, I don’t want him to get hurt again.”

“Hurting is part of the processes in life, you learn and become stronger from them.” Jinwoo replied disagreeing with Seungyoon’s view.

“Things such as love do not last forever. It is the work of jeweler’s and florists.” Seungyoon commented rather bitterly since his parents were divorced early due to infidelity of his father. He was pretty much jaded on the topic of love and marriage.

Taehyun only looked at his friends as he took in their advice. They were right in some ways and he knew that it was up to him to figure out his feelings. It was supposed to be a no strings attached or “leave when you feel like it” type of arrangement but instead he felt conflicted.

Mino still made him feel things that Taehyun thought he had already buried into some deep and ark corner of his heart. Apparently, three years was not as long as he thought it was since he could not stop himself from feeling that flutters whenever he was with the older guy. In fact, he may be feeling even deeper than he was and he wondered how that was even possible that they could even reach a deeper level of connection. 

“Do you still love him?” Seungyoon asked quietly and instantly a wave of silence immediately washed over them.

Taehyun only looked dumbly at his friends while his heart scrambled to find the answer to the question.

“Don’t fret too much Taehyun-ah. Just go with the flow and let nature take its due course.” Jinwoo reached over to give the seemingly troubled guy a pat on the back.

The other two nodded and with that they went back to their dinners and continued their long awaited catch up session.

~~~~~~~~~~

Mino : How was dinner with the guys?

Taehyun : the usual. They were, of course very nosy about my personal life…

Mino: HAHA… did they give you a hard time?

Taehyun : it was okay… it was just hyung-nims being their usual selves. I just had to provide them with a run down that they feel satisfied then I am good… ^^ How was your day?

Mino : That is good to know… My day just ended… We went to the company for our practice session… tired~

Taehyun : Have you eaten? Make sure you eat before you head back to the dorm…

Mino : Can I come over?

Taehyun : Now? But I don’t have much food here…

Mino : I am fine with instant ramen… I just want to see you… please??

Taehyun could not help but to let out a sigh when he read the reply however his mind was already up and mentally picturing his fridge to see what he could prepare with such a late notice.

Taehyun : Aish! Fine…

Who was he trying to kid anyway?  Taehyun wanted to see Mino as much as the older guy.

Mino : Awesome… be over in an hour or so… I will head back to the dorm for a shower first…

Taehyun : You can always just shower over here…. I can scrub your back for you…

Mino : Be here in half an hour! ^^ And yes I am taking up on your back scrub offer…

Taehyun could not help but to let out a laugh when he saw how instantaneous Mino’s reply was. He slowly padded out of his room to go raid his kitchen to see if there was anything he could prepare for Mino.

In the end, with whatever little ingredients Taehyun had left, he figured kimchi fried rice will be the easiest to cook since he had some leftover rice.

Do you love still love him? 

The question was like a broken record that kept replaying as though it was on a constant repeat mode. Actually Taehyun knew his answer really well but he decided he just wanted himself to know and come to terms with it before he lets anyone else know.

“More like you never left I guess.” Taehyun mumbled to no one in particular as he started to prepare the food.

There was the famous saying that first loves takes the hardest to die. It was either you took a long time to die or you would just continue loving the person all the way and no one will ever come close to the depth of love you felt for him. Taehyun had always wondered he belonged into the first or the second category of lovers.  

Taehyun continued to with the motions of preparing a meal while his mind did the wandering off…

~~~~~~~~~~

Taehyun woke up to the most amazing feeling even though he was tired and a little sore, he felt as though he was floating on a happy cloud nine. His body could help but to shiver deliciously as it came into contact with something hard and warm as he stretched. Almost immediately, the hand around Taehyun’s waist tightened its hold.

“Going somewhere?” A deep voice filled with sleep asked before the younger felt the same pair of lips kissed his shoulders.

“Hungry… I want to look for something to eat…” Taehyun answered but could not help but to let out a soft moan as his lover’s hands started their restless roaming all over his body.

Mino only smirked as his boyfriend was not putting up any resistance to what he was doing to him.

“Just one more round then we will go have breakfast… Promise… ” Mino promised before he turned Taehyun over to start another session.

They have been together for a good year and a half. For Taehyun, he felt that it was pretty good given that was what he considered as his first real relationship with anyone. Though like every couple, they fought but they always managed to make up and come to an agreement almost every time.

Mino was definitely the more active between the two of them. He was definitely one who would rather go out like to a club or something rather than being cooped up at home. Taehyun, on the other hand, was more comfortable just lazing in bed or at home all day with his book on his lap.

However, recently Mino had been busy preparing for his auditions with P.O and Zico so they had not been meeting up much and spending time together since Taehyun did not want his boyfriend to be distracted. Still, Taehyun missed him a lot and hoped that he could actually be there for his 21^st birthday since it was not every day that he turned 21.

However, Mino convincingly dashed his hopes by saying he had an important audition to prepare which he tried to be as understanding as he could but still felt disappointed. In the midst of Mino’s explanation, the older guy pointed out that he had to hold his laughter in then in order not to spoil the surprise which earned him continuous fists hitting against his chest in exasperation.

His best friends saw fit to throw him a big party bash at an upscale club to welcome Taehyun’s entry into the adulthood but it was the second half the activities that Mino planned after the party came to an end that Taehyun enjoyed the most. Mino prepared a romantic last night dinner slash supper with Taehyun favorite foods and it ended with the birthday receiving his couple bracelet and a full body massage with they both know will only end up with one result. Taehyun had been more than ready to take their relationship and what better time to do it than on the day when he finally became an adult.

Initially, Taehyun was nervous since he had never any ual experience with a guy before. He had actually searched for information on the topic but none of what he read actually prepared for the actual experience. Mino had been as gentle as he possibly could and kept that he was feeling okay before he took it a step further. All in all, it was a wonderful experience for the younger guy, the sounds Mino when mingled with his own spoke volumes of the joy and connection they felt.

Little did Taehyun know that before that year ended, things would be changing….

~~~~~~~~~~

“Owww…” Taehyun muttered as the hot oil from the splattered a few tiny drops onto his arm effectively snapping Taehyun out from his little trip down memory. It was also good since a moment longer he would have burn the entire dish.  Quickly to avoid ruining his efforts, Taehyun quickly transferred the food onto the food and set it on the kitchen table before he set about to clean up while waiting for Mino to arrive.

When it was half an hour later, his doorbell rang signaling that Mino arrive. Taehyun was presently that Mino was holding a familiar cake box.

“I made a quick detour to Seunghyun hyung’s place. He still has your favorite pastries in stock for the day. I think we could share it for dessert later after I finished the food you made.” Mino playfully smirked when he saw how Taehyun was pleasantly surprised with his little present.

“I suppose I ought to be nice and share them.” Taehyun carefully opened the box to find his favorite brownies.

“Well, you could be selfish and have them all to yourself but I am sure you will feel bad about it.”

“I don’t think so…” Taehyun deadpanned which only caused Mino to laugh out loud.

Mino stepped forward so that he was close enough to wrap his arms around the younger guy which had Taehyun automatically reciprocating his gesture by looping his arms around his neck, leaning in close.

“You stink… You need a bath… ”

Taehyun could smell a bit of the sweat that still lingered on Mino’s skin. He found it strange that he did not find it a turn off but rather it made the older guy more and man but still he did not tell the guy what he honestly felt.

“Lead the way Taehyun-ah…”

Taehyun only smiled before he guided Mino to the master bathroom.

“I know. After all, I am remember clearly I did promise you a back scrub when you are here.”

“I missed you too…” Mino smiled knowingly understanding the hidden meaning behind the younger guy’s words and actions.

Taehyun said nothing as they made their way to the bathroom, spending whatever little pockets of time Mino had before they would go back to each of their respective real lives.

~~~~~~~~~~

HIhi sorry the long delay... I was away but feel thoroughly recharged and back with some idea on the developments to this fic that i hope will be able to share them soon wiht you all after i see how should i be fitting them in that is... LOL

I hoped that you all are still following the series and please leave a comment on what you think after reading this chapter! i would greatly appreciate it!

Till then... see you soon :) hopefully we will see Winner soon too... *fingers crossed*